


somewhere in neverland

by hazukinagisa



Category: One Direction (Band)
Genre: M/M, deaf!harry, did i tag that right
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2013-09-19
Updated: 2013-10-03
Packaged: 2017-12-27 01:01:12
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 4
Words: 5,485
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/972464
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/hazukinagisa/pseuds/hazukinagisa
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>"God, do you not have any ears?" Louis practically whines, leaning forward again with his elbows on the table. The guy's head finally lifts up and he looks at Louis, and Louis is confused when he sees he's only focusing on his lips as he talks.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

Louis scribbled at his notebook mindlessly as he sat in the school library, ignoring all of the work he should currently be doing. The point of being in the library in the first place is to study, - because, in all honesty, he's doing so horribly bad this semester - though he can't make an effort to do anything. He's only here because he can't stand anyone in this school. They can't stand him either, so he doesn't care. 

He sets down his pencil and he immediately freezes as a kid sits down at the other side of the table. He can't see the guy's face, all he sees is a big mop of curls, but something tells him he's shy, or nervous. Propping his elbow on the table, he rests his cheek in his palm, looking slightly interested as he leans forward. "You're new here, aren't you?" He asks quietly, not wanting to be screamed at by the librarian for being too loud. That's happened several times before, he doesn't feel like hearing it today. He knows he's loud. He raises an eyebrow when he gets no response from the guy. His head is still down and he gets his books out, then almost right away he starts getting to his work. Louis finds that boring and he huffs a dramatic sigh.

After a few moments of sitting there in silence, the only sound between them is pages being flipped and shifting in their seats, Louis decides to get his attention again. Which leads to no responses just like the first time. "God, do you not have any ears?" Louis practically whines, leaning forward again with his elbows on the table. The guy's head finally lifts up and he looks at Louis, and Louis is confused when he sees he's only focusing on his lips as he talks. Shutting up, Louis gives him a confused look. 

It takes him a second to finally comprehend what the guy is trying to say when he makes a gesture towards his ears, shaking his head. "I don't.. Are you..?" Louis rambles on quietly, frowning. He watches as the guy tears out a page from his notebook and writes on it, shoving the paper towards him. "So you can't hear." His shoulders slump, and he writes back on the page. 

Soon, he learns his name is _Harry._ Louis likes it and he really thinks it fits him. The two of them pass notes back and forth and keep a conversation going. Somehow, because Louis is just so damn _funny,_ he makes Harry laugh. Harry had this embarrassed expression on his face when he did it. It was quiet and sort of breathy, kind of deep in a way. 

Louis actually thought it was adorable. 

He assumes Harry is finished with his work because he starts packing up his things, then he stands. Louis can't help but frown, and he quickly stands as well, holding out a hand to stop him. Harry lifts an eyebrow and stays where he is, waiting for Louis to continue on. 

Louis is sure he looks completely stupid, because he has no idea how to talk to him, so he holds up both of his hands and makes a motion with his fingers like he's typing, or tapping on a phone. Harry lets out another one of those cute quiet laughs that Louis enjoys so much and he gets out his phone, handing it over to Louis. Almost immediately he types in his number with joy, saving it as a contact, and he hands the phone back to Harry with a smile. 

Harry held his hand out, looking expectant, and Louis stared at it slightly confused before taking it, shaking Harry's hand. Harry rolled his eyes and motioned for his phone, and Louis let out a nervous laugh, handing Harry his own phone which was quickly given back with his contact information as well. 

Giving a small wave, Harry headed out of the library and Louis slumped back into his chair, letting out a small sigh. He packed up his own things and headed home, dropping his bag on the floor and he headed straight to his bed after he got into his room. He waited practically all day for a text from his new friend. He wondered if he should try sending him a text first, but he didn't want to seem attached, or too desperate. It wasn't until almost midnight when his phone began vibrating. He quickly flipped over in his bed and grabbed his phone, reading the message. He laughed softly as he read it. All Harry said was that he hoped he didn't wake up Louis, then there was a small sad face at the end of the message. 

Honestly, Louis never sleeps, so it was amazing to find out that his new friend most likely didn't either. Louis has no idea why he has such a sudden interest in this guy, but all he knew is that he didn't want whatever it is they had going to end. An hour later he found himself pulling on his shoes and throwing on a coat, sneaking out of his house as quiet as he could. For some reason, he felt sort of nervous. He met Harry earlier, they've been texting back and forth for an hour, and now they're going to have an endless marathon of movies since Harry's mother is out of town for the weekend. But before they do that, they're going to the supermarket to buy some junk food first. 

Once Louis made it to the supermarket, he could see Harry standing around by the entrance and he ran over to him right away. Harry's face lit up as soon as he saw Louis and Louis wanted to jump in front of a car just from how _cute_ Harry was.

He had to laugh a little when Harry put out an arm for Louis to loop his through, and with their arms linked together, they walked into the market and began finding food. Harry carried around this little basket for them to throw things into, and within ten minutes, they had several small pints of ice cream, a large amount of candy, and even a box of cake mix stacked up in it. To be fair, the two of them paid, pitching in and paying for it together and they were on their way to Harry's house. Surprisingly, it wasn't that much of a distance between where the supermarket and Louis' house was, so they were there within only a couple of minutes. 

Louis walked into the living room, sitting on the couch and watching as Harry wandered off to the kitchen to put their food away. There was a stack of movies on the coffee table and a part of Louis was curious as to how Harry watches television, but he also felt rude. When they were texting, he wanted desperately to ask, though he was sure he just read captions. When Harry came back out, - shoving one of the pints of ice cream they got into Louis' hands with two spoons - he put a movie in, and Louis was _right._ There were subtitles put on and Harry plopped down on the couch next to him, giving him a questioning look because, really, Louis just sat there like an idiot and stared. 

He managed to pull himself back together and then they were watching the movie. Louis couldn't help occasionally turning his head slightly and catching a glimpse at Harry every so often as the movie played, watching how much close attention Harry paid to the words on the television screen. As if, if he looked away for just two seconds, he would miss something. He had himself leaned against Louis' shoulder, his spoon digging at the ice cream that was held in Louis' lap, and even while bringing the spoon up to his mouth, his eyes didn't leave the movie. Louis found it amusing, if he was honest. 

By half-way through the second film, he didn't seem to care as much. He's probably seen it too many times. It seems like the kind of movie he'd watch; complete chick-flick, a lot of drama, cliche to the point where it's just _obvious_ that the guy and girl get together in the end. 

Louis already knows for a fact that Harry is the kind of person who cries during romance films. And it's alright, because Louis is like that, too. 

Somewhere by the time the credits are screen, Harry has his head in Louis' lap and he's looking up at him, a slight grin on his face. Louis has no idea what that means, but he grins back down at him and lightly flicks his nose. This causes Harry to wrinkle up his nose a little and he pokes his tongue out, swatting a hand at Louis'. 

For a second, Harry has this look on his face and he's up from the couch, on his feet, and he dashes to the kitchen. He looked over excited, and Louis is still absolutely confused, but he shuts the television off and he follows him. Harry has the box of cake mix in his hand and he's rummaging around through one of the cabinets, then he pulls out a large bowl. Louis realises Harry probably just now remembered that they bought the cake mix and he's most likely too enthusiastic to bake. 

The entire time Harry is pouring the mix into the bowl, along with all the right ingredients that he needs and he begins stirring everything, Louis does nothing at all but sit on the kitchen counter and watch. It's more fun to watch Harry, because he looks so focused and he's making a lot more noise than he should and it's cute. There's a lot of _clanking_ going around and Louis can only imagine what it's like when Harry wants a midnight snack and everyone is asleep. He probably wakes the entire house up. 

The cake gets put in the oven and Harry turns to Louis, moving his hands around and making a lot of gestures and then Louis laughs because, he doesn't realise he can't sign. He must have forgotten, but this actually reminded Louis that he probably hasn't spoken all day, and wow, it made him notice how much he talks. He actually never shuts up, now that he thinks about it. 

He points and Louis looks at the stove, reading that they have exactly twenty-five minutes until the cake is done. He gives a nod, then the both of them are cleaning up the kitchen a little before walking to his room, laying down and resting on the bed. 

Louis watches and smiles softly as Harry lays there, seeming to mindlessly play with a loose thread on Louis' coat. He's not sure if he's allowed to, but he does it anyways and reaches his fingers over, running them into Harry's curls and lightly ruffling his hair. Harry doesn't mind, and he doesn't move at all. If anything, he leans slightly more towards the touch and he closes his eyes, letting out an inaudible yawn. By the time the oven goes off, Louis jumps slightly and nearly falls off the bed. Harry really doesn't have a reaction to that and Louis lets out a quiet sigh, getting up and he wanders off to the kitchen, deciding to let the other boy rest while he takes care of the cake. It is, like, almost five in the morning after all.


	2. Chapter 2

The cake got set on the kitchen counter and Louis began going through several cabinets until he managed finding a small can of frosting. He had no idea how he actually found one, considering him and Harry completely forgot to buy some when they were shopping, though he's not going to complain. He'll just think of himself as lucky. When he opens it, he sees that some of it was used already but he just gave a shrug and got out a knife, going right ahead and he started frosting the cake. By the time he got half-way through the process, - the very poor process, because the cake looked _bad_ \- there was a tap on his shoulder and he jumped, nearly dropping the knife he was holding and he took a deep breath, turning to face Harry. 

Louis raised an eyebrow and Harry crossed his arms, giving him an expression that looked highly unamused. Louis is pretty sure Harry is just upset because he went on with finishing the cake without him, but he had a good excuse. He just wanted Harry to relax because he looked tired. That was enough of an excuse, right? Right. Louis held the knife out to Harry, and Harry had to take a second to clap his hands excitedly, then he took the knife, finishing up what Louis was doing. When it was done it didn't look nearly as bad, and the two of them each had a slice and they were back in Harry's room, comfortably sitting on the bed as they happily ate. 

After a few moments, Louis couldn't help but catch himself as he began staring at Harry, and once Harry lifted his head and gave Louis a questioning look, Louis opened his mouth as if he were about to speak and then quickly closed it. Sitting down his half eaten piece of cake, he moved off the bed and grabbed a notebook and pencil that laid on top of Harry's desk. He flipped through the pages until he found a blank one and wrote on it, seeing as that was one of the most easy, and simple ways for the two of them to communicate. 

He sat back in front of Harry and showed him the page, smiling softly as he did so. Harry stared at it for a second, then frowned, shaking his head slowly. The paper read; _"Would it be too much to ask you to speak?"_ Louis wasn't sure if that would be considered moving too fast, or being rude in any sort of way, but he didn't want to push the other boy into doing something that would make him feel uncomfortable. 

Louis frowned as well and Harry quickly snatched the notebook away, writing a response, and he held the book up. _"I'll speak eventually, I'm just embarrassed and it may take a while."_ Louis smiled again and chuckled slightly. Harry wrote another reply and it read; _"You're not allowed to laugh at me, I know you just laughed."_ It even had a sad face at the end of it and that only caused Louis to laugh even more, and he pulled Harry into a hug. Harry made a small noise that sounded like a quiet hum and he hugged Louis back, unable to contain a grin. 

They finished eating and Louis was polite enough to take both of their plates and wash them, then put them away. He contemplated on either, going home and sneaking back in without his mother noticing, or staying at Harry's, considering he has the house to himself. He could take advantage of that and spend as much time with his new friend as he can, but then he realised that even if he did go home or not, his mother wouldn't mind. She knows that he's a big boy and he wouldn't do anything too bad. Regardless, if she does call him, he can inform her of where he is. Where he is and what he's doing is completely innocent. 

When he went back into Harry's bedroom, Harry had a change of clothes for Louis, and he decided he is definitely going to stay. The other boy grinned and held his hands over his own eyes and turned around, allowing Louis to pull his clothes off and he put on the ones he was given, and it was kind of funny. The sweats he had were a little too long, enough to where he could walk on them, and the t-shirt was slightly loose and roomy. Regardless, it was comfortable. Though, Harry let out a quiet chuckle under his breath at the sight of him. Louis was awfully short compared to himself. 

Louis stood there for a moment, unsure if he should sleep on the floor or the couch. He was sure Harry could tell what he was thinking, because Harry quickly scooted over in his bed and pulled his blankets back, giving some room for Louis to crawl under them. Louis didn't hesitate in doing so, and he smiled, getting comfortable as he shifted slightly and laid on his side, pulling the blankets up to his nose as he pressed the side of his face into a pillow. 

Harry reached out and ruffled Louis' hair up a bit before he turned over, to where his back was facing Louis. For some very confusing and highly _unknown_ reason, Louis had the urge to extend an arm out and wrap it around Harry, but he held back the feeling and turned over as well, to his other side and he let out a quiet sigh, allowing his eyes to flutter closed.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm sorry this isn't as long as the first chapter! I was thinking maybe I should update this every Wednesday or Friday? And then whenever I'm not busy with homework, I can post a new chapter whenever I please. ;~;


	3. Chapter 3

Within the next few weeks, Louis found himself becoming more and more close to Harry. He used to have a few people he somewhat considered friends, - no, more like acquaintances, that he would hang out with every so often, but recently he's been putting all of his time in to spend with Harry. It's been kind of like a routine. Weekends, they spent hanging out together, going out and doing things. After school, they went to each others houses. Louis found it kind of weird in a way. They didn't have to particularly do anything to have fun, just being around each other wordlessly, not speaking at all, and they were content. When they were together, it was sort of expected in a way that they would spend hours on end hanging out. They would sometimes lie there and do absolutely nothing. It was quite relaxing and Louis rather enjoyed it, if he was honest. 

Today, he took a little time to go to his own house before he headed over to Harry's. He grabbed a small basket he had that was filled with several fake flowers, - okay, they weren't his, he decided to be mean and steal them from his sisters, and he will definitely replace them later on - and he tossed his backpack aside before walking over to Harry's house. He was sure to text the other boy first, and he was informed that the door was already unlocked, so he went ahead and let himself in once he arrived. He kicked his shoes off, then he headed to Harry's room. 

Harry was relaxing on his bed, messing around with his phone and he grinned as he saw Louis walk in. Louis gave a grin back and shut the door behind him, moving over towards Harry's bed, and he sat in front of him. He placed the basket of flowers down and took a few of them out. Harry gestured a hand around towards them and raised an eyebrow, a little curiously. Louis motioned towards his own head with the flowers and tried to get a point across, then he just sighed, and began twisting the long stems together. After a moment, Harry finally understood what Louis was doing and he continued to grin. 

Louis finished making the flower crown and he lightly tugged Harry towards him, placing it on his head and he laughed. It looked really cute in his opinion. There was enough left over to make another one, and Harry decided to make one for Louis. It was a little messier than he wanted, but nonetheless it was still a crown, and he shoved it in Louis' hair, giggling softly. 

Letting out a quiet sigh, Louis adjusted the crown and gave a thumbs up to the other, making a silly face as he crossed his eyes and poked out his tongue. Harry put both of his hands on Louis' cheek and made a face back before pulling away, and he laid against the bed once again. Louis laid next to him, on his side, that way he could face Harry. He had his arms folded underneath his head so he could be slightly propped up a bit, and he clicked his tongue, staring off sort of mindlessly. Harry reached out, grabbing Louis' nose as he looked at him, pursing his lips. 

Swatting at Harry's hand and raising an eyebrow in question, Louis stared at him again. Harry had this expression as if he was deep in thought, or contemplating something. He looked like he really wanted to say something, and Louis didn't really understand. He seemed very.. _Concentrated?_ Louis lightly chewed his bottom lip and shifted over, turning enough to where he could reach for something to write on, then Harry grabbed his wrist and pulled him back, shaking his head, mouthing a small _"no."_

Louis nodded softly and looked at Harry, watching as he attempted to form a sentence, then Louis understood. He waited, listening to the small mumbles and hums that came out of Harry's mouth. It didn't sound like anything exactly coherent, though Louis still smiled and tried to encourage him on. He closed his eyes a little, hearing as Harry quietly stuttered out quiet words and he finally opened his eyes and lifted his head as he heard Harry try to say his name. 

"L-Lou.." Harry sounded slightly frustrated and he let out a small, breathy groan and pressed his face into a pillow, muffling himself.  
Laughing slightly, Louis cupped Harry's chin and lifted it, making him look up and he mouthed a _"you got it"_ before lightly nudging a thumb at Harry's cheek. 

The other boy smiled slightly and leaned away from the touch, shoving his face back at the pillow. Louis understood how embarrassed Harry must be, and all he cares about is how much he's really _trying._ He doesn't know how Harry really.. Ended up the way he is, but he's not going to force it out of him. He plans to let Harry warm up on his own, and he'll make sure to help him as much as he can. 

Putting an arm out, Louis gently rubbed the other boy's side, and he saw a small smile quirk up on Harry's lips, and he hummed quietly in content. Louis grinned and closed his eyes once again, shifting slightly closer as he himself got comfortable with the pillow underneath his head. 

The two of them must've fallen asleep like that, because when Louis woke up, he nearly forgotten where he was and the sound of a door closing and a woman talking loudly on the phone startled him. Harry was already awake, though, rubbing at his eyes tiredly and the flower crown he made for him slightly crooked and off his head. Louis grinned and shoved it back on his head more straight, then he pulled himself out of bed. 

Harry's mother came up to the bedroom and Louis gave a small smile and wave to her in greeting, and he watched in interest as Harry and her moved their hands back and forth in conversation, and his shoulders slumped slightly as he really _wished_ he could talk to him in the same way. He doesn't see a problem really in the way they do talk, making gestures at things and writing their words on paper, or even texting, though he wants to make more of an effort to be closer to his friend. 

After his mother left, Harry got out his homework and Louis decided to do the same. The two boys spent the remainder of their time studying, and Louis laughed a little as Harry tried showing him how to properly do his math, scribbling out several equations and all the steps on how to solve them. He got all the answers wrong too many times to count, but when he finally got one right, all he got in reward was a small pinch on his cheek. Louis rolled his eyes and lightly shoved Harry, and when they were done studying, he gave Harry a tight hug before heading home.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm not sure how to feel about this chapter. ;~;


	4. Chapter 4

Louis had to take some time to contemplate over the way he wanted to communicate with his friend, and finally after a few days, he headed down to the library to snatch up a couple of books to help him learn, along side a bit of internet research as well. He wasn't exactly sure what he was preparing himself for, but he was sure it wouldn't be easy. To make it more simple on himself, he decided to try learning some things he really wanted to tell Harry. And as well as that, he would try picking up simple words and sentences that he can catch from him. 

Over the weekend, he stayed home and threw himself into his research, looking up easy words he could try out first. He made sure to get a good look at his hands as he moved them around and he tried memorizing every movement. He was a thousand percent sure that as soon as he saw Harry again he would probably forget how to say a small "hi", so he wanted to be well prepared. 

A few times, Harry has accidentally used sign language in front of Louis, so he now recognizes some of the things he's said, which is a good thing. He'll try his very best to remember those things. 

Come the end of the weekend, Louis had this sudden thought hit him that he was probably doing all of this for nothing. He has no idea where it came from, or why he's feeling so nervous and insecure over the entire thing, but he just realised he really doesn't know what he wants to say to Harry specifically with this way of speaking. He can't think of anything significant, which makes him feel bad in a way, though it's still a good thing that he's trying to learn. He really, really trying.

He'll get better at it eventually, and maybe even something like "how are you doing?" might work out. 

He knows that Harry can carry on a conversation just by reading a person's lips, and he has no idea how he does it, but he wants to make it easier on him. He really hopes that what he's doing can somehow show how much he cares. He's learning for the sake of his friend - who is now his best friend. He wants to do something that benefits to the other. 

That morning he arrives at school, he doesn't mess around and he heads straight to his classes. That's a first, considering the first thing on his mind when he gets to school is _Harry,_ and how he's going to ditch every single class of his just to be with him. They're in different grades which makes things slightly difficult if they want to spend every waking moment together. That was a bit dramatic, although true. 

Getting to class and being a well behaved student is easier said than done, because once it comes to him actually doing classwork, he has no idea what he's doing. There's a few things he's picked up from studying with Harry, though it goes no farther than that. 

He got his stuff done and come time for lunch, he put his things away in his locker and made his way straight to the cafeteria. He slid right next to Harry on the bench that he sat at and grinned, lightly tapping his shoulder. Harry nearly had a heart attack and jumped, coming extremely close to elbowing Louis in the jaw. Louis managed to dodge his elbow and he laughed. Then he remembered exactly what he had been practicing up on for the entire weekend and he shifted, clearing his throat a bit, just to make himself more comfortable. 

Harry gave him that look he always gives him, raising an eyebrow in question, and he leaned against the table as he stared at Louis. It's funny in a way, the fact that Harry already knows immediately when Louis has something on his mind. That just might be one of the many things that Louis is so fond of when it comes to his friend. 

Louis held up a finger, which mainly looked like he was telling Harry to hush up. In a way, he was. He was mentally preparing himself for this, and oh wow, he really did forget how to say _hi._ He's stupid and he's already embarrassed. 

Holding a hand over his face, Louis hunched over against the table and let out a frustrated sigh. Harry continued looking at him with the confused expression, and he had no idea what was going on. He certainly knew Louis was stressing over something and he made a small sound, coming out like one of those quiet giggles he always makes and he lightly patted Louis' back soothingly. 

A moment later Louis had himself pulled back together and he sat up more straight, trying to be more confident as he properly faced Harry and he held his hands up, doing exactly what he learned. His hands shook slightly from how nervous he was, considering the fact that he really wasn't sure of what he was doing, and he really wasn't as confident as he'd like to be. He's supposed to be goofy, loud, and somewhat obnoxious, if the opinion came from someone else. He doesn't know where all of that went. He managed out a small _"hello, how are you?"_ and Harry grinned as he took it all in. 

Harry started signing back to him, and yeah, Louis didn't have that much knowledge. He had no idea what Harry just said. His shoulders slumped and he lightly thumped his head against the table, sighing rather dramatically. 

Patting his back, Harry got Louis to face him again, then he proceeded to speak to him. He moved his hands much slower, giving Louis time to catch up, and if he didn't understand, he at least got an idea of what he was saying. He's positive the response he got was an _"I am good, and how are you?"_

They continued this back and forth for a few moments, and Louis tilted his head slightly at one of Harry's reply. Harry kept grinning widely, shaking his head as Louis tried getting it out of him. Finally, after containing his never ending grin and a laugh, Harry wrote it out on paper. _"You look pretty today."_ Louis wasn't sure whether to laugh or blush. 

If Harry was laughing and found it amusing, he should probably slap him. 

He was too nice to do that, though. Once lunch was over, Louis gathered up all of his things and proceeded on with the rest of his day at school. He looked forward to going home mainly so that he could practice up on his sign language more. Louis knew that Harry would be able to help him on it, but he was so incredibly determined to learn himself. He wanted to be fluent with it, and if anything, impress his friend. 

By the end of the night he was rolling around on his bed, shifting uncomfortably and unable to stay in one position for too long, frustrated. Given the fact that he couldn't fall asleep, or even really feel tired, he messed around with his phone a bit. He was at that point of contemplation where he wasn't sure if he should text his friend or not. It kind of reminded him of the first time they met, though he's sure that at this point in their friendship, if he _did_ wake Harry up, the boy wouldn't care. 

He's certain that if Harry called for him in the middle of the night, he would immediately drop everything and go over to his house, so he shouldn't feel bad. 

Sitting up in his bed, Louis curled his blanket around himself and pulled it close as he began tapping at the screen of his phone, sending a message to Harry. Part of him was surprised, yet not to see a reply within only a few minutes. He's realised that Harry had a really messy sleeping schedule, where he either sleeps during the day, or during the morning. There is no inbetween, really. 

Which is kind of perfect for him, honestly. 

He thought that, maybe if he talked to Harry for a little bit, he'll get tired and fall asleep easily. After an hour he decided that wasn't the case and, no, that's not going to work. He slipped on a fresh pair of clothes, pulled on a warm coat along with some shoes, then he was quietly leaving his house.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Oh god, I don't even know if this is late or not! I've been so busy, aaah. uvu


End file.
